


By a Stream on D'Qar

by with_bleeding_hands



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: ADHD Leia Organa, F/F, Force-Sensitive Leia Organa, Rey Needs A Hug, autistic Rey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-07
Updated: 2017-05-07
Packaged: 2018-10-29 05:43:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,672
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10847640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/with_bleeding_hands/pseuds/with_bleeding_hands
Summary: A ficlet about Rey and Leia bonding. Not necessarily shippy, but can be if you choose to interpret it that way.





	By a Stream on D'Qar

**Author's Note:**

> And the Rey/Leia plot bunnies keep reproducing…

Leia sensed Rey’s growing panic the moment she stepped into the mess hall. As soon as her lunch tray was filled, she made her way to the corner where Rey was sitting alone, looking wide-eyed.

“Afternoon, Rey,” said Leia in a low voice, and Rey jumped slightly.

“Oh…hello, General,” said Rey, her voice quavering.

“Are you all right? You can be honest.”

Rey shook her head. “Noisy.”

“Words aren’t easy for you right now, are they?” Leia asked softly; Rey shook her head again. Leia almost reached to squeeze Rey’s shoulder, but she wasn’t sure how well Rey would handle being touched. She looked like she might jump out of her skin. “Why don’t you come with me? We can eat somewhere quiet. I think you’ll like it.”

Rey nodded and stood up. She was trembling.

“Don’t forget your tray,” said Leia, not unkindly.

Rey looked around for a moment, as if she had forgotten where her tray was; she scooped it up, a little clumsily. Leia waited for Rey to stabilize her tray in her shaking hands before leading her out of the mess hall.

“Where…?” Rey started and then trailed off as Leia led her through an exit.

“We’re going outside. There’s a river nearby. I like to sit on the bank and eat sometimes. It’s quiet.”

“Quiet,” Rey repeated, sounding relieved.

Leia balanced her tray on one arm to open a heavy door. Sunlight streamed in and Rey blinked in the sudden light. “This way.” Leia held the door open for Rey, who walked outside and immediately gasped.

The landscape was blanketed in green. Lush, thick grass sprawled over the ground surrounding the base and as far as Rey could see, and the area was studded with small thickets of trees and bushes in shades of green Rey hadn’t known existed. A few yards away, a large, clear stream cut through the grass. “Oh,” Rey whispered.

“Want to sit under the trees? It’s not quite so bright,” said Leia, and Rey nodded.

They set down their trays under a nearby copse and sat down. Rey slumped over, resting her head on Leia’s shoulder. “It’s beautiful,” she whispered and began to cry.

Leia held Rey close. “Let it out,” she soothed, briskly passing a hand over Rey’s back.

Rey clung to Leia and wept, but she quieted after only a few minutes. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I was just…overwhelmed.”

“By the noise in the mess hall or all the green or both?” Leia wanted to know.

“Both,” said Rey, sitting up and wiping her nose. “And that you cared enough to help me.”

“I could sense that you were overwhelmed.” Leia tilted her head to the side. “Are you a heightened sensor?”

Rey’s brow furrowed. “Is…that like being Force-sensitive?” She asked.

“A little,” said Leia. “But instead of being able to sense other people’s presence, feelings, motivations, and things like that, your normal senses are heightened, or at least you respond more strongly than other people to…sensory input, I guess you would call it. Sometimes it gets hard to do ordinary things like talking when you feel overwhelmed, or you feel like the only thing you can do is get the hell out of there.” 

Rey’s eyes widened. “That sounds just like me!” She grabbed Leia’s hand. “Tell me more about being a…a heightened sensor.”

Leia laughed and squeezed Rey’s hand. “If you insist. First of all, there’s no one way to be a heightened sensor. Some heightened sensors never speak; some speak more than usual. Some panic worse than others when they’re overwhelmed; some scream and cry, some shut down. Most heightened sensors like to do things that are…what’s the word…gratifying to the senses. Sometimes it’s obvious—I knew one heightened sensor when I was growing up who always flapped her hands—and sometimes it’s more subtle or easier to hide, like enjoying certain kinds of dancing or singing. My…” Leia trailed off for a moment and smiled sadly. “My parents got me into singing lessons as soon as they could, because I was always singing at inappropriate times. Not exactly acceptable royal behavior.”

“General, are you a heightened sensor?”

Leia shook her head. “I have some traits of being a heightened sensor, but no; I have scattered focus, which is a little different. I think my brother is a heightened sensor, though. And you can call me Leia.”

“Leia,” Rey repeated softly, as if she were unable to believe the legendary princess was allowing her to use her first name. “Are a lot of Force-sensitive people heightened sensors?”

“I’m not sure,” Leia admitted. “My brother might know.”

“I remember when Maz Kanata first gave me the lightsaber. I had just been having these…these visions…I felt like I might explode. I ran away from her at first.” Rey shook her head. “I was afraid I was just a coward.”

“You’re not a coward, Rey,” Leia insisted. “Quite the opposite.”

“Can you tell me more?”

“Hmm.” Leia thought for a moment. “Many heightened sensors have trouble interacting with people. They don’t have an instinct for social rules. One of the differences between me and my brother. Royal behavior was required of me, and even though I could never stop fidgeting or pay attention during royal court proceedings, the social aspects weren't hard for me.” Leia laughed once, bitterly. "If my brother had ended up in a similar situation...he'd have had a hard time as a prince."

“Most of my interactions with other people were arguing or bartering,” said Rey ruefully. She leaned her head against Leia’s shoulder again. When that proved to be uncomfortable—Rey’s torso was quite a bit longer than Leia’s—she lay down with her head in Leia’s lap.

“You’re awfully affectionate,” Leia remarked.

“I am now,” said Rey contentedly.

“Right…I don’t suppose you had the opportunity before,” Leia mused. “Will you tell me about your life on Jakku?”

“Why would you want to hear about a scavenger’s life?”

“Because…I want to get to know you.” Leia paused. “I sensed there was something special about you the moment I saw you.”

“I’m no one,” Rey demurred.

“I would know that isn’t true even if I couldn’t sense it,” Leia countered. She gave Rey’s cheek a quick backhanded caress.

Rey swallowed. “Thank you. And thank you for bringing me out here.”

“You’re welcome.”

Rey took a moment to collect her thoughts. “Sometimes I would see people at Niima Outpost. Off-worlders. They would often leave almost immediately, and I would wonder if they came to Jakku by accident, or without knowing what it was really like. I used to think my parents were like that, but…now…” Rey blinked and a tear dripped down her face. Leia brushed it away, running the pad of her thumb over Rey’s cheekbone. “I’m sorry. Sometimes when I think about how they were never coming back for me…”

“Nothing to apologize for.”

“I worked for a small-time trader, a Crolute named Unkar Plutt. He would give his scavengers leftover Imperial and Republic rations in exchange for parts. I learned young that the parts that were worthwhile to him were parts that could be repurposed, so I had to learn everything I could about ships’ inner workings. I…sometimes I wonder how I survived. When I was…thirteen, I think…I was starving. There were days when I could barely move. I thought for sure I was going to die, that no one would ever take my skills seriously, that I had tapped out all of the downed ships, and I was scouting a downed Imperial All-Terrain Armored Transport and I saw a green spinebarrel flower growing in the sand in a corner. That was when I realized that I could find a way to survive on Jakku. If that little flower could find a way, so could I.”

“You were very brave, Rey,” Leia murmured.

“I managed to scavenge the AT-AT for working parts, and I…well, obviously, I survived. I left that flower where it was, but I started collecting flowers whenever I found them.” Rey took a deep breath. “Of course…as soon as I started doing well…I had to contend with other scavengers who were jealous. I started carrying a metal pipe I found in the AT-AT, and I learned to use it to defend myself, too. Eventually I made myself a quarterstaff.”

“I’m sure you’ll be quite a hot shot with a lightsaber, then,” said Leia.

Rey turned over and looked up at Leia. “Can I take my hair down? It’s not very comfortable having it like this, and I…don’t want to move.”

“Of course. I can do it if you want.”

“Okay.” Rey turned her head so Leia could take the fastenings out of her hair. Rey sighed happily as Leia sifted her fingers through the loose strands. “That feels good.”

“You like having your hair touched?”

“Mmm.”

Leia spent a while toying with Rey’s hair and lightly scratching her scalp. Rey relaxed and enjoyed the contact thoroughly, her eyes closed and a small smile on her face. Leia wondered if she should point out that their food was getting cold, but she couldn’t bring herself to disturb Rey while looking at the expression of total bliss on Rey’s face.

“You’re certainly making up for lost time when it comes to affection,” noted Leia.

“Yes,” said Rey dreamily. “I feel comfortable with you.”

“I’m glad.”

“Leia?”

“Hmm?”

“Do you think I enjoy you touching my hair so much because I’m a heightened sensor?”

“Maybe. It could be that you are just getting used to receiving affection, but I would lay odds that you being a heightened sensor also has something to do with it.”

“Thank you for telling me about that.”

“You’re welcome.” Leia paused. “You said you used to collect flowers.” 

“Yes?”

“Has anyone shown you the Resistance’s garden?”

Rey looked up curiously at Leia. “What’s a garden?”

Leia smiled. “I’ll show you.”

**Author's Note:**

> I’m Autistic and headcanon Rey as Autistic, so I wanted to write a fic involving that. I got this idea from a time in grad school when I made the mistake of trying to get food from my school’s cafeteria on Taco Tuesday and it was just too fucking loud in there. The cashier snapped at me when I couldn’t hear her, and that was the last straw and I took the hell off running. 
> 
> I decided on “heightened sensor” as a SW-verse term for Autistic because that seemed the most likely Autistic trait to focus on (even though not all Auties are sensory seekers) because of its similarity to Force sensitivity. I also hardcore headcanon Leia as ADHD, so I decided on "scattered focus" as the SW-verse term for that.


End file.
